Most of the time, President Biden doesn’t wear a mask, but occasionally he’s spotted with one. Sometimes his events are in crowded indoor rooms, other times outdoors. And through it all over the past two weeks, people close to Biden — if not in “close contact” as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — are contracting covid as part of a wave washing over parts of official Washington. The White House approach appears somewhat haphazard, at times taking care to go beyond CDC guidelines and at others walking up to the edge of what’s recommended. And at least once in the last two weeks, he publicly disregarded his public health agency’s advice while visiting Poland. The president has been spared covid — so far. He is fully vaccinated and has been boosted twice, but he’s nearly 80 years old, putting him at higher risk for a severe case of the disease. Should Biden contract covid, there would likely be an immediate economic and political shock. And there could be a political price to pay for the president who staked his campaign on keeping America safe from the pandemic. “If the president contracts the virus, it’s going to be a big deal,” said Jonathan Reiner, a professor of medicine and surgery at George Washington University. “And there is this small but real risk of needing to be hospitalized or worse.” White House aides acknowledge that Biden could become infected. “I do think it is important to note it is possible he will test positive for covid at some point,” Navigating this new phase of the pandemic is tricky. Biden wants to show Americans they can get back to a normal life which inevitably involves taking more risks — which in turn potentially puts the president in the path of the pathogen.
The CDC has also stopped emphasizing its map of transmission levels, which labels Washington as “high transmission” for the coronavirus. Instead, the public health agency suggests relying on data that includes hospitalizations, which are low in D.C. But that shift masks the covid risk, health experts say, potentially making people feel overconfident about attending crowded gatherings.
Over the past 14 days, Biden has had at least 18 events where he has interacted with members of the public. including Biden walking around in a crowded mess hall in Rzeszów, Poland, to buck up U.S. troops. That put him unmasked and indoors in a country that the CDC warns Americans to avoid and recommends those traveling to wear masks at all times indoors. Biden also headlined a packed celebration in the East Room where he pulled close to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and invited her back Wednesday for a bill-signing ceremony. Pelosi announced Thursday that she tested positive for the coronavirus. Eleven of Biden’s recent events have been indoors — typically, but not always, the smaller ones. Seven have been outside. One — a packed celebration of the Affordable Care Act featuring former president Barack Obama — was initially set to be outside but moved indoors amid poor weather in Washington. Obama had covid in mid-March. So far, all of the publicly announced cases among lawmakers and top government officials in Washington have reportedly been mild. Democratic leaders have wholeheartedly embraced vaccines, boosters and even second boosters, providing them protections even as many of them have dropped masking and social distancing. The Biden administration has argued that even though the virus continues to circulate, most people who avail themselves of vaccines, boosters and newly available antiviral medications are protected from serious disease. When the last month is taken into account, Biden has come in contact with at least four people who tested positive either shortly after, or right before, interacting with him. “There were clear ways to make this safer, which should have been done,” said Abraar Karan, an infectious-disease physician at Stanford University. “One thing people need to realize is that the more potentially infectious hosts that are gathered at a single indoor event, the higher the chance of an outbreak as it only takes one person.” “I think it’s just a matter of time before the president and/or the vice president contract the virus,” Reiner said, adding that the White House is almost anticipating it. “But better for an 80-year-old man not to acquire this virus.”Biden came into contact with Pelosi at least twice shortly before she announced her covid diagnosis Thursday. The pair embraced briefly at the Obama fete on Tuesday. (Pelosi didn’t attend the Gridiron dinner.) The second contact came Wednesday afternoon, when Pelosi was invited back to the White House to watch as Biden signed into law the Postal Service Reform Act of 2022. She stood over him, and the two spoke briefly. Biden momentarily laid his hand on her wrist as he said something to her. A series of people who Biden interacted with came down with covid, including White House press secretary Jen Psaki, principal deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin. The new CDC guidance hides the true risks to individuals.But the shift has alarmed some advocates. For instance, while Walensky on Friday touted a map that the “community level” of covid is low in D.C., the agency also says that the city is still facing “high transmission” of the virus. NN: Its political. Biden is in big trouble at the polls. SO they have no choice politically but to open her up…….. Another wave is coming